Sunday, February 10, 2008

I got Stan again. He's a local drunk who normally goes downtown and normally pays for his ride. The last time I had him he refused to pay and I had to summon the police (post here). He learned from past mistakes, which were, in the order he made them:

1: customers really do have to pay for waiting time2: cab drivers won't put up with being told to "fuck off" four or five times, and3: cab drivers will call the police to make people pay (and it's only a matter of time before he gets a driver who will fracture his skull)

This time around he decided to try to beat the system by getting a ride to an all night diner, then paying, then getting out and ordering breakfast to go. Before he got out of the car he asked if I was going to be "in the area." I would be. Then he asked if I was planning on sitting "right here." Absolutely. He verified just before he closed the door: "Are you going to be waiting right here when I come back from the restaurant?" I assured him I would be waiting. You can see this coming... I dropped it in Drive and lit up the rear tires, speeding away the moment the door closed, and I tapped the horn twice to make sure he knew my exit was not a misunderstanding.

I then called the few remaining drivers on duty and explained the situation. When he called for a taxi again, from the diner, no car showed up. He called back ten minutes later. When dispatch asked where the driver assigned to the call was (not me), he said he couldn't find the diner. That's an obvious lie, as we all know very well where that diner is located. Another car was sent, and ten minutes later Stan had to call again. This time the driver said he was "almost there," and eventually picked up Stan and drove him home. Breakfast was quite cold by then, I'm sure.